Alan Fadling's Blog, page 55

God Does More Than We Can Imagine

Sometimes my heart and mind seem to forget the immense power and generosity of God. When facing great challenges or losses, I’m tempted to think that they are the biggest thing in my life. But God is always greater than anything happening in my life or in our world. Always.

 

Listen to how Paul captures this truth at the end of his prayer for the Ephesian church:

 

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” (Eph. 3:20-21)

 

I love the superlative language Paul uses. God is able to do a lot. God is able to do immeasurably more than we think. If we tried to imagine the immense power and grace of God at work in our lives, we’d comprehend only the faintest hint of it.

 

It’s remarkable to think how the main place where God’s great and loving power is at work isn’t somewhere out there in the wide world but is right here among us and in each of our lives. The power of God is personal and present to us.

 

I think back to the first part of Paul’s prayer that closes with the above verses. What exactly is it that God is able to do more of than we know how to ask or are able to imagine?

God is more than able to strengthen us inwardly and richly with Spirit-given power so that Christ may be very much at home in our hearts through our trusting friendship (Eph 3:16-17a).
God is more than able to empower us together, from a place of deep-rootedness in love, to grasp the measureless dimensions of Christ’s love—knowing what cannot be fully comprehended (Eph 3:17b-18).
God is more than able to fill us to the brim of all God’s fullness (Eph 3:19).

 

All of this leads me to pray, “Father, I try to imagine what it would look and feel like to be strengthened and empowered to these ends. Make me a person in whom Christ is very much at home. Make me someone who knows and relies on the deep, broad, lasting love of Christ. Make me a person full to overflowing of all your fullness. Amen!”

 

For Reflection: 

Was there a word or phrase from these lines in Ephesians that seemed to especially draw you in?  Take a moment to return to it, and see if you can repeat it a few times to commit it to memory. Then you could recall it when anxiety or fear or some other impulse tempts you to minimize God’s active and loving power in your life.

 

(Purchases made via the links may provide an Amazon Affiliate commission fee to Unhurried Living. This adds nothing to the cost of your purchase).

 

Photo by Pablo Heimplatz on Unsplash

Preparing the Soil of Your Soul

Awhile back, during a time of journaling and prayer, I perused the notes from my first training in spiritual direction. I had packed two folders with worksheets, practices, and handwritten notes from multiple lectures.

 

My plan was to read through everything so I could recall and glean from the spiritual wisdom those pages contained. However, I made it through only half of one handwritten notebook. I barely scratched the surface. Reading through my notes in a soulful way turned out to be a much slower process than I had anticipated.

 

That time was so rich. Rather than being overwhelmed by memories of the training, I was able to soak in the goodness of God and reflect on how he had used those teachings to carry me through the next ten years.

 

Those lessons were like a rototiller, cultivating the soil of my soul’s garden. I had been ready to receive what was offered, and it truly prepared me for all of the work that followed over the decade since then.

 

I thought I would share with you a few seeds of wisdom from my notes. My hope is that one or two of these ideas will connect with you right where you are.

 

Go over your life story often enough that you can find God in every part of it.
Repetition moves prayer from head to heart. You appropriate the gifts by practice.
Contemplation – a time when you know you are loved. I realize now that I have been trying to “do” contemplation. I see now that contemplation is a receiving, not a doing. I get to spend time knowing that I am loved.
“Let’s remember that we are in God’s holy presence.”
The opposite of love is control. Show me someone who has given up power and control and I’ll show you someone close to sanctity. “Unless you become like a little child, you will never enter the kingdom of God.”
Childlike faith requires insatiable curiosity.
“In the shelter of each other, people live.” (Irish proverb)
You are a witness to their story. Don’t just react. The gift we give is presence.
Love – let the other person be where they need to be.
You are most beautiful when you are most authentically who God made you to be.

 

Reflection

Choose one of the above thoughts or phrases to carry with you today. Then ask yourself one or more of the following questions:

How does it make you feel?
How does it increase your view of God?
How does it open you to others?

 

Receiving, overflowing, and giving is a meaningful process for every part of life.

 

Photo by Peter Žagar on Unsplash

 

Podcast 164: Struggling with Depression (Gem with Diana Gruver)

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, major depressive disorder (or MDD) is the leading cause of disability in the U.S. for ages 15 to 44. MDD affects about 16.1 million adults each year. And think about all of those who remain undiagnosed. Then add to that the increased anxiety and depression caused by COVID-19. Many of us have likely struggled with a form of depression over the last year. And, certainly, most of us know someone who struggles. How do we cope? 

Drawing on her own experience with depression, Diana Gruver, author of Companions in the Darkness, looks back into church history and finds depression in the lives of some of our most beloved saints, including Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King, Jr.  Diana tells their stories in fresh ways and offers practical wisdom both for those in the darkness and those who care for them. 

Diana Gruver writes about discipleship and spiritual formation in the every day. She holds a M.A. in Spiritual Formation from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and currently serves as the Communications Director for Vere Institute. She lives in south-central Pennsylvania, with her husband and daugther.

Read the first chapter of her book HERE for free.

Learn more from Diana on social at:
Facebook @diana.stottlemyer
Twitter @dianagruver

Grace Strikes Us

When our lives feel like painful blow after painful blow, we need a sense of the reality of God. I recently revisited a book I read in seminary thirty years ago or more by my preaching professor, Ian Pitt-Watson. In it, he shares some lines from Paul Tillich about experiencing the grace of God.

 

“Grace strikes us when we are in great pain and restlessness. It strikes us when we walk through the dark valley of a meaningless and empty life. It strikes us when we feel that our separation is deeper than usual, because we have violated another life, a life which we loved, or from which we were estranged. It strikes us when our disgust for our own being, our indifference, our weakness, our hostility, and our lack of direction and composure have become intolerable to us. It strikes us when, year after year, the longed-for perfection of life does not appear, when the old compulsions reign within us as they have for decades, when despair destroys all joy and courage.” *

 

So much in these lines sounds like the year I’ve just lived. I haven’t always sensed grace striking me in it all, but grace has been present nonetheless. Tillich brings us home when he urges:

 

“Sometimes at that moment a wave of light breaks into our darkness, and it is as though a voice were saying, ‘You are accepted. You are accepted, accepted by that which you do not know. Do not ask for the name now; perhaps you will find it later. Do not try to do anything now, perhaps later you will do much. Do not seek for anything; do not perform anything; do not intend anything. Simply accept the fact that you are accepted!’ If that happens to us, we experience grace. After such an experience we may not be better than before, and we may not believe more than before. But everything is transformed” *

 

God takes generous initiative towards us. Grace strikes us. Too often, in his last year, my attention has been focused on my own initiative, effort, energy, or intentions (or my lack of such).  These human dynamics can be good and God-given realities, but they are real because they are response.

 

And one way to receive the grace that strikes us in so many different ways is to simply embrace God’s acceptance of us. God receives us here and now just as we are. God is withholding acceptance until some moment when I finally change in some way I need.

 

For Reflection:

How have you experienced God’s gracious presence in this difficult year?
How are you hungry for grace to hit home for you in a fresh way?
Why not talk honestly with God about this?

 

*Paul Tillich. The Shaking of the Foundations, pp. 161-62, quoted in Ian Pitt-Watson. Preaching: A Kind of Folly. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1976, p. 9-10.

 

(Purchases made via the links may provide an Amazon Affiliate commission fee to Unhurried Living. This adds nothing to the cost of your purchase).

 

 

Photo by mark chaves on Unsplash

Podcast 163: Where Prayer Becomes Real (Alan with Kyle Strobel)

Most of you in our listening community are people who pray. Or at least people who have prayed. You may be grateful for the opportunity to come  into the presence of God. Your prayer may feel fruitful and life-giving.  

 

Or, you may have become disillusioned when it comes to praying. You might feel like you’ve come to pray but God didn’t seem to come to listen or respond. It’s not an uncommon experience. But, in the end, you probably still want to be a person who lives in the presence of God—a person who prays.

 

Today, I’m talking with my friend, Kyle Strobel, about a new book that he and John Coe have written called Where Prayer Becomes Real. We’ll talk about our experience of prayer and how we might enjoy the reality of God’s presence. That’s the focus of today’s episode of the Unhurried Living podcast.

 

Kyle Strobel is the assistant professor of spiritual theology and formation at Talbot School of Theology, Biola University, and is the author of Formed for the Glory of God (IVP, 2013) and co-author of Beloved Dust (Thomas Nelson, 2014). Kyle can be found at KyleStrobel.com or on Twitter.

 

We are happy to provide an excerpt of Kyle's latest book, "Where Prayer Becomes Real". Download it HERE.

Fitness for Your Soul

Over the years, as I engaged in exercise, I’ve collected some random tips from various fitness instructors. I’ve been able to narrow some of these ideas into an acronym that may help you as you continue to lean into this new year.

 

Just remember ARC: Ability, Rhythm and Core.

 

A is for Ability – The instructor would often say things like, “Listen to your body. Only do what you can do. Stretch yourself, but not to the point of pain.”

 

This is great advice for formation. With any spiritual practice, it is always good to begin where you are. Here is some great advice that Dallas Willard gave to a congregation during a Q&A session:

 

Question: Where should I begin if I am new to the disciplines?

 

Answer: Be experimental. Don’t be heroic. Be easy. Take things slow. Begin small. Breaking bad habits will cause us discomfort. Come to God as a happy student of Jesus. Expect resistance. Focus on the friendly face of Jesus. When something doesn’t work, figure out why it didn’t before just trying the same thing again. (Dallas Willard)

 

Start where you are. It may be clunky at first, but continue to grow in strength and grace. That’s how it is with spiritual practices or anything else you are starting. Choose one thing. Go slow. Let it become a habit. And you will grow in strength and grace.

 

R is for Rhythm – When doing exercises of balance, the instructor would often say something like, “One side of your body is usually stronger or more capable of balance than the other. That’s ok, just go with it. It may change next time.” Your body is rarely in full and equal balance at all times.

 

Ah, the myth of life balance. Do you know anyone who has a perfect balance of every part of their life? What we really seek are healthy life rhythms. There are likely practices and capabilities in our lives that are overemphasized and others that are underemphasized. Allow yourself to engage in rhythms that bring your underemphasized practices to the forefront.

 

If you are in a busy season, be sure to make space for some reflection time. If you find yourself disengaged, make space for some good quality work and interaction. It’s about healthy rhythms of engagement and disengagement. Receiving and giving. Filling and overflowing.

 

C is for Core – How many times did I hear the instructor say, “Engage your core!” Almost every single time. You’ll be hard pressed to find a coach who doesn’t have their athletes do some form of core training. Strength comes from the inside out.

 

For your soul, the question becomes, “What is at the Center?” Or better yet, “Who is at the Center?” The quality of your abilities and rhythms is in direct correlation to you keeping your eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith (Heb. 12:2, NLT).

 

In what ways are you strengthening the core of your soul? For most of us, it is in letting the things we believe, become the things we know. This is about keeping the main thing, the main thing.

 

In the beginning, I was fumbling around as a newbie in my exercise class. I believed it would help me get healthier and stronger. Over time and with practice, I became someone with muscle memory and strength who was able to learn new routines with ease. Healthy and strong were no longer hopes but actualities (knowing).

 

Reflection

 I encourage you to…

Start where you are.
Engage healthy rhythms.
Let your believing become knowing through practice.

 

Photo by Jonathan Borba on Unsplash

Podcast 162: Soul Care for Wounded Healers (Gem with Bethany Hiser)

Burnout. This a most unwelcome word. And an even less welcome dynamic. But our guest today, Bethany Hiser, found herself smack in the middle of it. A social worker, jail chaplain and justice advocate, Bethany was in need of the very soul care she was providing to others. We’ll engage her story today.

 

Bethany Dearborn Hiser is the director of soul care for Northwest Family Life, a network of therapists trained to work with survivors of domestic violence and sexual trauma. As a bilingual social worker, chaplain, and pastoral advocate, Hiser has worked in a variety of ministry and social service settings with people affected by addiction, sexual exploitation, incarceration, and immigration.

 

Whether you're a social worker, therapist, pastor, teacher, or healthcare professional, From Burned Out to Beloved will equip you to confess your limitations, embrace your identity as a beloved child of God, and flourish in your vocation.

 

Enjoy a free chapter from Bethany's book.  Download HERE.

Restoration, Grace and Salvation

Restoration, grace and salvation are all words of good news. Don’t we need a bit of good news these days? There has been so much hard news over the last year.

 

I caught a vision for these words thanks to a prolific songwriter in the days of King David. He was a sort of musician-in-residence in those days because of his grace and skill. Listen to this chorus from one of his psalms:

 

Restore us, God Almighty;

              make your face shine on us,

              that we may be saved. (vs. 3, 7, 19).

 

What might it sounds like for you to make Asaph’s song prayer your own? 

 

“O Lord, you are so powerful. Restore me. Make me all that you meant for me to be. It will never happen if it’s left to me, but your generous and empowering presence could do it. May the reality of your shining smile towards me renovate my life into the beautiful image of God I see in the face of Jesus. May I in this way be saved in every way I need to be. You know better than me. Amen.”

 

For Reflection:

Does one of the lines in this prayer catches your imagination. Is there something you’d like to ask God for in the spirit of these lines? Why not take a moment to take the risk?

 

(Purchases made via the links may provide an Amazon Affiliate commission fee to Unhurried Living. This adds nothing to the cost of your purchase).

 

Photo by Soundtrap on Unsplash

Podcast 165: The Lyrical Life of Jesus (Alan with Michael Card)

A mentor of mine would often say something like this: “The Christian life is not mainly something I believe or a group to which I belong. The Christian life is somebody with whom I enjoy a living, day-to-day relationship. That somebody, of course, is Jesus. He is risen and alive among us today—right now—by his Spirit. He is inviting us into the love he and the Father share. That has been the inviting good news I’ve sought to enter more deeply into over this challenging year in which we’ve found ourselves.

Recently, I enjoyed a conversation with Michael Card about his most recent book titled The Nazarene: Forty Devotions on the Lyrical Life of Jesus. I found what he wrote and what we talked about refreshing, encouraging and inspiring. 

Michael Card is an award-winning musician and performing artist. He earned a master's degree in biblical studies from Western Kentucky University under Dr. William Lane. His many books include Scribbling in the Sand, A Fragile Stone, Inexpressible, and the Biblical Imagination Series on the four Gospels.  The book we’re talking about today came out in November of last year and is titled: The Nazarene: Forty Devotions on the Lyrical Life of Jesus.

 

Enjoy a free chapter of this book by Michael Card HERE.

Learn more from Michael and connect on social media at:
Facebook @MichaelCardMusic
Instrgram @michaeljcard

Podcast 161: The Journey of the Soul (Alan with Bill Gaultiere)

When it comes to talking about and understanding our life with God, I’ve long loved the image of a journey as a way of talking about it. Our life of faith isn’t merely a static set of beliefs to defend or argue about. It isn’t just being part of the right association. It is a way of life in which each of us grows, learns and develops. It is a life in which we deepen in trust, broaden in love, strengthen in hope.

 I recently enjoyed a conversation with a good friend of ours, Bill Gaultiere, about a new book he and his wife, Kristi, have written called Journey of the Soul. We’ve been grateful for their presence in our lives for some time now. In their new book, they share insights into the shape that our journey of growth in Christ might take. 

Before we go there, let me tell you a bit more about Bill. He is a psychologist and a spiritual director. By the age of 30 he had published three books with mainline Christian publishers and sold over 40,000 copies. But then God led him into a 20 year hiatus from publishing in order to better love Christ, his wife and three children, and everyone in his circle of influence. 

It was a longer journey than he’d expected. Bill and Kristi have their doctorates in psychology and are the founders of Soul Shepherding, Inc., a nonprofit ministry that cultivates intimacy with Jesus for pastors and other servant leaders. 

Check out Bill and Kristi's new book here.  We think you'll enjoy "Journey of the Soul".

Learn more and connect with Bill on social:
Facebook @soulshepherding
Instagram @soulshepherding
Twitter @SoulShepherding
Youtube @billgaultiere
Podcasts @soultalks